Canada's Olympic women's biathlon team announced

DOMBAS, Norway--Double Olympic champion Myriam Bedard of Loretteville,
Que., Nikki Keddie of Toronto, Michelle Collard of Vanderhoof, B.C., and
Kristin Berg of Edmonton qualified for Canada's women's Olympic biathlon
team following Sunday's national selection races.
Bedard, had pre-qualified for the Games and did not compete this weekend.
The selection trials were a three-race series comprised of one 15 kilometre
and two 7.5 kilometre races and featured eight entries. Michelle Collard
of Vanderhoof, B.C., was first overall with 100.94 points, Nikki Keddie of
Toronto second at 100.39 and Kristin Berg of Edmonton third at 100.20 .
The top-three each won one race and placed second in another. Bedard and
Berg were on the 1994 Olympic team while the 1998 Nagano Games will be the
first Olympic experience for Keddie and Collard.
"It's always hard to race against your best friends," said Keddie. "Four
of us were going to the World Cup and Olympics and the other four were
going home. That was the hard part. We wish we could all win."
Martine Albert of Rimouski, Que., was fourth and is the team alternate.
On the men's side, the four-member national team squad for the World Cup
season was selected also based on a three-race series (a 20 kilometre and
two 10 kilometre races).
Jean Paquet placed first at 101.34 points, Eric Jensen of Regina was second
at 101.23 and Ian Robertson of Edmonton third at 98.37 and all qualified.
Steve Cyr of Val Belair, Que., ninth at the world championships, won the
first race on Thursday but a foot injury forced him out of the other two
races. He was selected to the team by the coaches.
"I'm a little bit surprised," said Robertson, 26, who earned third, fourth
and fifth place finishes in the three selection races. "I basically had
quit the sport for six weeks in the summer because I wanted to go back to
school. But then I found out the selection competition was going to be open
to developmental team athletes. So I had 13 weeks to get in shape. This
proves to me that when I want something bad enough I can go and get it."
Erick Gosselin of Quebec City was selected as the alternate.
Canada has qualified two Olympic spots so far in men's biathlon and can
qualify two more at this season's World Cup races.
The World Cup season gets underway next weekend in Lillehammer, Norway.
Results at Canadian national team trials in biathlon at Dombas, Norway
(missed targets in brackets):